diff --git a/lib.lua b/lib.lua
index 94ec3d0..ef2d98f 100644
--- a/lib.lua
+++ b/lib.lua
@@ -180,8 +180,8 @@ end
 
 -- Inverse of get_internal_identifier - parses that kind of string into ID/meta/NBT
 local function string_to_item(s)
-    local mod, item, meta, NBT = string.match(s, "([A-Za-z0-9_]+):([A-Za-z0-9_]):([0-9]+)#([0-9a-f]+)")
-    if not NBT then mod, item, meta = string.match(s, "([A-Za-z0-9_]):([A-Za-z0-9_]):([0-9]+)") end
+    local mod, item, meta, NBT = string.match(s, "([A-Za-z0-9_]+):([A-Za-z0-9_]+):([0-9]+)#([0-9a-f]+)")
+    if not NBT then mod, item, meta = string.match(s, "([A-Za-z0-9_]+):([A-Za-z0-9_]+):([0-9]+)") end
     if not mod or not item or not meta then error(errors.make(errors.INTERNAL, "string did not match regex")) end
     return { ID = mod .. ":" .. item, meta = tonumber(meta), NBT = NBT }
 end